Working through the complicated landscape of SEO might seem difficult at the beginning. And, if you are not well-versed in this regard, you might feel confused as well. Also, considering how frequently Google changes its algorithm, following a proper SEO pattern is impossible. But worry not, because someone’s got to tackle it, and who knows, that someone could be you.
The good news is that we live and breathe SEO as our day job. Even if you’re not a seasoned pro, we’ve got some smart strategies to boost your search engine rankings without requiring a complete career overhaul. Let’s explore a tried-and-true technical SEO checklist that promises significant rewards for your time and effort.
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1: Check the Crawlability of Your Website
If you’re checking whether your website is easily searchable, just skimming through robots.txt might not give you the full picture. Robots.txt is a bit basic and can be inaccurate.
It’s not the only way pages can be kept from showing up in search results—there are also instructions in meta tags like no-index or X-Robots-Tag. Remember, Google now checks out pages the way modern browsers do. So, in 2017, it’s super important that not just your main pages, but all the bits and pieces like CSS and JavaScript are searchable.
If Google can’t see your CSS, your pages won’t look right (a total user experience mess). And if your JavaScript is off-limits, Google won’t pick up any of the cool dynamic stuff on your site.
If your website uses a lot of JavaScript, you’ll need a crawler that can handle that. Right now, only two SEO spiders — WebSite Auditor and Screaming Frog — can crawl and understand JavaScript. So, keep an eye out for those!
2: Is Your Website Mobile-Friendly?
Let’s talk about a super basic yet crucial SEO tip. Back in 2015, Google rolled out a big update known as ‘Mobilegeddon’ where it begun favoring sites that played nice with mobile devices.
Fast forward to today, having a mobile-friendly site is a big deal. Now, how do you check if your website is mobile-friendly? No worries, there are some cool free tools for that:
- Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test
- HubSpot’s Website Grader
- Bing’s Mobile Friendliness Test Tool
- GTMetrix
Take Google’s tool, for example.
It gives your site a thumbs up if it meets most or all of Google’s mobile-friendly standards. So, it’s like a mobile fitness test for your site!
3: Increase the Speed of Your Website
Google, since the beginning, has always abandoned slowpokes. So, if your website takes a lot of time to load, it might receive a massive penalty from the search engine.
And it is true even if the content of your website is top-notch. Therefore, if you want to improve the ranking of the platform, it’s important to keep an eye on its speed.
For that, you can use some nifty free tools like – GTMetrix, Pingdom, or Google PageSpeed Insights.
Pay attention to something called Core Web Vitals score – it’s like a report card for your site’s performance. If your website is a turtle in the speed race, don’t worry. You can fix it up. Start by doing these:
Slim down those images – Think of it like giving your site a diet. Compress those images with tools like TinyPNG.
Enable browser caching – It’s like leaving a little trail for visitors, so they don’t have to start from scratch every time they swing by.
Turn on compression – According to Yahoo (they know a thing or two), it can shrink your HTML and CSS files and make your site zip through cyberspace.
Speed up that server response time – Google says, “Keep it under 200ms.”
Get yourself a Content Delivery System – It’s like having your website in multiple places at once, making it faster for everyone, everywhere. Try something like BunnyCDN. That’s it – your website’s speed makeover in a nutshell. Make it faster, and watch it climb the ranks!
4: Perform Weekly Audits
Alright, let’s break down the steps for a quick and easy SEO checkup using Semrush:
I. Get Started:
First off, you got to keep tabs on your website’s health to climb those search result ranks. And for this, we’re diving into the world of technical SEO audits.
II. Pick Your Tools:
There are many tools out there like Semrush, Moz, Ahrefs, and Serpstat.
They’re like your SEO sidekicks, helping you spot issues and boost your site’s performance. But today, we’re vibing with Semrush – it’s like the superhero of the SEO world.
III. Free Trial Magic:
If you don’t have Semrush yet, no worries. Just snag a 14-day free trial of Semrush Pro. It’s your backstage pass to SEO stardom.
IV. Set Up Your Project:
Now, let’s get down to business. In Semrush, hit “Add New Project,” toss in the details, and choose “Setup Site Audit.”
V. Pages, Pages, Pages:
Tell SemrushBot how many pages to scope out, and hit “Start Site Audit.” It’s like sending your detective bot to explore every nook and cranny of your website.
VI. Scan and Fix:
Sit back and relax while Semrush does its thing. It scans for errors, waves warning flags, and spots any issues. Then, like a friendly GPS, it points you to the right path with suggestions on how to fix stuff and make your website all spick and span.
VII. Deep Dive Guide:
Now, if you’re feeling like you want to geek out a bit more, Semrush has this cool SEO audit guide. It’s like your treasure map for detailed tips and tricks.
And there you have it – a breezy guide to keep your website in tip-top shape for the SEO game. Happy climbing those SERP peaks!
The Final Say!
Eventually, many companies decide to seek external support for their SEO, even if they already have a dedicated in-house search engine marketer.
Let’s be honest, delving into the world of SEO might feel overwhelming. Enlisting the help of a skilled digital marketing agency can be a game-changer.
They bring in new viewpoints, creative strategies, and SEO tools that your in-house team might not have. This ensures you get the best bang for your buck in your SEO efforts.
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